Welding processes join two work pieces of similar material together by increasing the temperature of the work pieces and fusing the work pieces to one another. Resistance spot welding is a welding process that passes electrical current through adjacent work pieces of metal. Adjacent work pieces are held together by electrodes, and electrical current is passed from one electrode to another through the work pieces. The electrical current locally heats the adjacent work pieces such that the work pieces become permanently adjoined to one another.
The properties of the spot weld may be affected by the amount and duration of electrical current passed through the electrodes, the material properties of the adjacent work pieces, and the shape and the size of the electrodes. Because the adjacent work pieces are held together by the electrodes, the electrodes have a tendency to wear and/or deform as more spot welds are processed. In production environments, the contacting portion of the electrodes, the weld caps, are often replaced to control the electrode shape, and therefore the spot weld properties.
Removal of weld caps from weld shanks of resistance spot welding machines may be difficult due to the size and orientation of the weld caps relative to the weld shanks. Removal operations may require application of force in particular regions of the weld caps. Additionally, weld caps are available in a variety of sizes and configurations to mate with a variety of weld shank sizes and types. Accordingly, weld cap changing tools that remove various sizes and/or types of weld caps from weld shanks are required.